Former Watford and England forward Phillips, 39, secured Palace's promotion to the top flight when he drove his spot-kick high into the net in the 105th minute after Manchester United-bound forward Wilfried Zaha was brought down by Marco Cassetti."It was a case of fourth time lucky for me in a playoff final because I lost my previous three," substitute Phillips told Sky Sports television."It's an amazing feeling. To come on and score the winning goal against the club where it all started for me 20 years ago is a fairytale."
 |
| Crystal Palace player celebrating the win |
Man-of-the-match Zaha was a constant threat in attack and he gave a performance that showed why United have already agreed a deal to sign him at the end of the season.
The first half was a cagey affair with few efforts on goal although Palace midfielder Mile Jedinak was lucky not to receive a red card for elbowing Nathaniel Chalobah.
It was much livelier in the second period and England international Zaha had a good chance to open the scoring when he burst through on goal. But he delayed his shot and it was eventually blocked.
Watford's Manuel Almunia then made four excellent stops to keep out Palace who were rescued from administration three years ago.
No comments:
Post a Comment